move out of the way, heading toward the staircase. A thought suddenly flashes through my mind as I take the steps down. There are lots of humans here, mostly ill or injured, but some also maybe dying. And a dying human brings only one thing. One of my kind. Oh no, what if one of them sees me here?
Panic shocks me into reality. I can’t be wandering about like this.
I speed up, nearly running down the steps, and when I reach the bottom floor, I pause, quietly pull open the door and surreptitiously glance around. There are a few humans here, but I can’t see any of my kind. But then, would I even be able to see one of my own kind in my current form?
I spot a sign for the ladies' toilets and head straight toward it, eyes firmly fixed forward. There would be no reason for one of my kind to be here, well, unless someone is scheduled to die in the toilets, that is.
I push the door open and poke my head in. Empty. I lock the door firmly behind me.
Looking around the small room, I take in the white windowless walls, the sink, the mirror above it and the toilet.
Curiosity suddenly engulfs me and I slowly walk over to the mirror.
A woman with alabaster skin, long black hair, full pink lips and bright blue eyes stares back at me. I touch the cool glass with my fingertips, tracing the outline of my face. So this is me. Lucyna. My reflection. I draw closer to the mirror. After all this time, I can see what the others see. What Arlo sees. He was very accurate in his description of my eye colour. I think he caught it perfectly.
That’s when I notice a few black marks on the sleeve and upper part of my clothes. It must be from James, the soot off his skin transferred onto me. I know humans keep their clothes clean, but it’s not like there’s anything I can currently do about it.
I look back up at myself, at my face, and begin examining myself closely. It’s so strange, I really do look human. I look just exactly like one of them.
After a time of close scrutiny, and knowing I can’t stay in the bathroom all night, I slip out of the door and, with my head down, walk quickly toward the exit.
The doors whoosh open on my approach and I find myself out on the pavement, the chilly air wrapped around me.
“ Got any spare change, love?”
I look up to see an older man with long brown wiry hair standing before me. His clothes are old and dirty and I can smell a stale stench emanating from him.
“ Spare change?”
He frowns at me and says impatiently, “Yeah, money, cash, readies, you know.”
“ Oh. No, I’m sorry.” I spread my hands. “I don’t have money.”
He looks at me like I’m an oddity, shakes his head, then without another word saunters off into the night.
He’s homeless, just like me. I instantly feel a pang of longing for home and gaze up at the sky, realising just how very alone I actually am, gravity weighing me down as the reality of my situation sinks in.
I sit down on the roadside.
I’m here on earth, alone. All alone. I have no home. Nowhere to go. I’m here with these humans, outwardly looking like one of them, pretending to be one of them, but I’m not. I don’t have money like they do. And I have absolutely no idea how to be a human. I’m so very out of my depth. You’d think after all these many, many years I’ve spent observing them, I’d have some clue, but I don’t.
But I guess I don’t have much choice, because whilst I’m here I’m going to have to ensure I fit in. I can’t arouse suspicion to myself, and I know the police have already figured out there is something different about me, so I’m going to have to learn quickly.
Right, so all I have to do is act human. I’ll spend tonight thinking over all of the things I’ve seen, their behaviour, their mannerisms, how they converse with one another. Then I’ll know how to be one of them. Being human. Lucyna the human.
Well, that is until the Elders find me, which I’m sure will not be long. Then again, I wonder if
Panic shocks me into reality. I can’t be wandering about like this.
I speed up, nearly running down the steps, and when I reach the bottom floor, I pause, quietly pull open the door and surreptitiously glance around. There are a few humans here, but I can’t see any of my kind. But then, would I even be able to see one of my own kind in my current form?
I spot a sign for the ladies' toilets and head straight toward it, eyes firmly fixed forward. There would be no reason for one of my kind to be here, well, unless someone is scheduled to die in the toilets, that is.
I push the door open and poke my head in. Empty. I lock the door firmly behind me.
Looking around the small room, I take in the white windowless walls, the sink, the mirror above it and the toilet.
Curiosity suddenly engulfs me and I slowly walk over to the mirror.
A woman with alabaster skin, long black hair, full pink lips and bright blue eyes stares back at me. I touch the cool glass with my fingertips, tracing the outline of my face. So this is me. Lucyna. My reflection. I draw closer to the mirror. After all this time, I can see what the others see. What Arlo sees. He was very accurate in his description of my eye colour. I think he caught it perfectly.
That’s when I notice a few black marks on the sleeve and upper part of my clothes. It must be from James, the soot off his skin transferred onto me. I know humans keep their clothes clean, but it’s not like there’s anything I can currently do about it.
I look back up at myself, at my face, and begin examining myself closely. It’s so strange, I really do look human. I look just exactly like one of them.
After a time of close scrutiny, and knowing I can’t stay in the bathroom all night, I slip out of the door and, with my head down, walk quickly toward the exit.
The doors whoosh open on my approach and I find myself out on the pavement, the chilly air wrapped around me.
“ Got any spare change, love?”
I look up to see an older man with long brown wiry hair standing before me. His clothes are old and dirty and I can smell a stale stench emanating from him.
“ Spare change?”
He frowns at me and says impatiently, “Yeah, money, cash, readies, you know.”
“ Oh. No, I’m sorry.” I spread my hands. “I don’t have money.”
He looks at me like I’m an oddity, shakes his head, then without another word saunters off into the night.
He’s homeless, just like me. I instantly feel a pang of longing for home and gaze up at the sky, realising just how very alone I actually am, gravity weighing me down as the reality of my situation sinks in.
I sit down on the roadside.
I’m here on earth, alone. All alone. I have no home. Nowhere to go. I’m here with these humans, outwardly looking like one of them, pretending to be one of them, but I’m not. I don’t have money like they do. And I have absolutely no idea how to be a human. I’m so very out of my depth. You’d think after all these many, many years I’ve spent observing them, I’d have some clue, but I don’t.
But I guess I don’t have much choice, because whilst I’m here I’m going to have to ensure I fit in. I can’t arouse suspicion to myself, and I know the police have already figured out there is something different about me, so I’m going to have to learn quickly.
Right, so all I have to do is act human. I’ll spend tonight thinking over all of the things I’ve seen, their behaviour, their mannerisms, how they converse with one another. Then I’ll know how to be one of them. Being human. Lucyna the human.
Well, that is until the Elders find me, which I’m sure will not be long. Then again, I wonder if
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